Slings and carriers: the simple solution to sleep deprivation

Slings and carriers: the simple solution to sleep deprivation

The Baby K’tan. Great for both mum & dad

How you can use a baby sling or carrier as a sleep solution

For the newborn baby adjusting to life on the outside can be difficult. Gone is the security of the snug womb, the gentle rocking 24 / 7 as mum gets on with her day. The constant companionship and reassurance of her heartbeat.

Little wonder that some babies just cannot, or will not settle in the conventional crib or bassinet. No matter how lovingly prepared and carefully situated. Some babies, more than you might imagine, really struggle with sleep over those first few months. A tired stressed baby inevitably leads to a tired stressed mum.

This is not a ‘Mummy Fail’!

Simple solution

A sling or carrier. Baby is snug and secure. Has the familiarity of the rocking motion that was their world for nine months. Has mum’s smell and sounds reassuringly close. And mum has her hands free to get on with her day. Be that the housework, home business or simply getting out for a walk in the fresh air.

The Nay-sayers!

Ahhh but that will only cause trouble in the long run! Many new mums worry that this will create ‘bad’ sleep habits longer term. In my experience this isn’t the case. Babies’ ‘habits’ change constantly over the first few months. No sooner do you think you have got a routine that works than baby decides that it isn’t working for them ad you simply have to readjust anyway!

My experience with a front carrier was that baby slept well and often during the day, and settled fine in bed at night. Nor did I have problems when it was time to advance from her ‘baby-bed’ to the cot and finally to her ‘big girl’s bed’. Some nights she was more reluctant than others to go down. But talking to other mums, whose babies were all within about 10 weeks of mine, they had exactly the same issues sooner or later. It didn’t seem to matter how any of us dealt with sleep problems, ALL babies had phases of being difficult to settle.

Sleep begets sleep

Do you have one of those babies that wake the second you try to put them down? Well I’ve had two of those too! I quickly learned that it was ok to pick them up and allow them to sleep in my arms for as long as they needed to. But then I found that I was spending a lot of lovely time cuddling on the couch and not getting much done that needed doing. The carrier/ sling was our saviour. And the dog got the best walks he’d had in ages! It’s amazing how easy it is to simply get on with your day once you are used to a carrier or sling.

Perfect for reflux babies

One of mine had terrible reflux and she cried all the time, needed to be in an upright position and always wanted to be with mum. A carrier was the perfect solution. Having to endure a year of constant crying, our carriers were the only thing that got us through. I could do the shopping, some cleaning, the cooking all with bub snug and tight in the carrier and happy against me. I will warn though, that sometimes you need to wait for bub’s tummy to settle before using the carrier as it can get a little messy if bub’s tummy is still upset, though the upright position does have a positive effect on that.

Rested baby = rested mum

A tired irritable baby will struggle to settle. They simply don’t know how. And whilst warm baths and soothing massages may help some. Sleep is what they really need. A baby that has slept regularly and soundly in a sling by day is more likely to settle and sleep well by night.

And that can only be good for mum and babe.

So if you know a tired mum and grumpy baby, or are expecting one anytime soon… Buy them the best present EVER! Sleep! Check out the range of baby slings available in the online store.

Some carriers canadapt to carry twins. Here is the Baby K’tan helping a twin mum go hands free for a while.